


HɅVEN

by acupoftaeandcookie



Category: Super Junior
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Fantasy, Fluff, M/M, Romance, Smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-07
Updated: 2019-04-08
Packaged: 2019-06-06 12:11:36
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 14,911
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15194513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/acupoftaeandcookie/pseuds/acupoftaeandcookie
Summary: Welcome to Cafe Haven!Mon-Fri 9:00-18:00.Closed on Weekends and Holidays.1. Everyone will be treated as equal.2. We will serve the best food we can offer.3. No outside food and drinks please.4. Do not touch any paintings or lights.5. We are not responsible for any lost or stolen items.6. Violation against policies is strictly prohibited.7. No humans are allowed to enter the proximity after opening hours without permission.Lee Hyukjae: 22 years old, waiter at Cafe HavenLee Donghae: 1000+ years old, a prince from another world"Which direction would you go after leaving your safe haven?"





	1. Haven

**Author's Note:**

> Hello people! I started a new story, hope you guys enjoy!

“Hyukjae? Hello? Where are you?”

 

“Here!” Hyukjae called from behind the boxes. “I’ll be there in a minute!”

 

Checking off the last item on his list, he reorganized the cardboard boxes before he left the storage.

 

“Well?” Asked the other man when he exit the backdoor.

 

“We are running low on Ethiopian Harar and Geisha beans, but the shipments should arrive within a week. The quality of strawberries is not very fresh so we have to order more as well.” Hyukjae reported with a proud smile on his face. “Otherwise, all other items are in good condition.”

 

“Man, customers sure loves Geisha, this is the second time that we ran out this month.” Kyuhyun said. “Maybe we should adjust the price?”

 

“Nah, the owner wouldn’t like it.” Hyukjae said with a frown. “Although I do agree that we should do that to make the cafe more profitable. Do you need help taking the orders?”

 

“Yea, a couple more came in while you were at the back. Can you go take the orders from upstairs?”

 

“Sure, I’ll be there after I wash my hands.”

 

Hyukjae went to the washroom and cleaned the dust off his hands. He checked the mirror to fix his blonde hair and clothes. Being a young man at the age of 22, he started working full-time at a cafe after he graduated from university. He dreamed to open a cafe of his own since he was a little kid.

 

Kyuhyun have been his best friend since as long as he could remember. Despite being the same age, the other was taller than him by half of a head. The other supported his idea and followed him throughout their lives, even going to the same university and the same program (Kyuhyun claimed that it wasn’t a big deal since he was smart in every subject).

 

Hyukjae grabbed his small notepad and walked up the wooden stairs. The owner designed the cafe to be a two-story tall building with almost an entirely white furnishing: white walls, white chairs, white table, and even white lights. The simple, elegant style kept the interior calm and serene, like what the cafe’s name suggested. The second floor had an entire wall made out of glass panes that looked out into the park behind the cafe. It was a beautiful October afternoon and all the trees turned into a sea of golden brown under the sunlight.

 

“Hello, welcome to Cafe Haven. My name is Hyukjae and I will be your waiter today. May I take your orders?” Hyukjae asked with a bright smile to a table of young ladies wearing pretty dresses.

 

The girls giggled. “Hi Hyukjae. We would like…”

 

Hyukjae wrote down what the ladies wanted. “…and a matcha latte. Oh, I’m sorry that I forgot to mention, Miss.” He turned to one of the girls. “We ran out of Geisha beans, so we can’t make your order of Geisha in Cherry Blossom today. Is there anything else that you would like to order?”

 

“Oh…well,” The girl’s face was flushed. “Can I take you as an order?”

 

The other girls laughed and giggled, but Hyukjae only smiled back. “I’m sorry Miss, I’m afraid that I cannot do that. There is a strict policy on employees’ relationship with customers here at Cafe Haven. If you don’t comply, I have no choice but to ask you to leave.”

 

Hyukjae could see the disappointment in the girl’s eyes. After a few moments, the girl finally stammered: “I would like a pumpkin spice latte, please.”

 

He walked back downstairs to catch Kyuhyun waiting for him. “Again?”

 

“Yep.”

 

“I swear you are the reason of more than half of the customers that come here.” Kyuhyun smirked. “I am surprised that you are still single.”

 

“Well,” Hyukjae sighed as he started to froth the milk. “I guess I just didn’t find the special someone yet.”

 

“You were even like this in high school.” Kyuhyun said, leaning against one of the coffee machines. “Maybe it’s not a girl you are looking for?”

 

“What are you suggesting, Kyu?”

 

“Maybe it’s a guy.”

 

Hyukjae didn’t really have a reaction to that. Both Kyuhyun and Hyukjae didn’t find attraction to the same gender repulsive. Love is love after all.

 

“I don’t know, maybe.” Hyukjae shrugged. “Why are you asking this now? Get back to work.”

 

“Wow, so serious.” Kyuhyun teased. “If you put that work into relationships, you will get laid in no time. I’m just saying this so that you won’t die as a virgin.”

 

Hyukjae smacked him lightly on the head with the pot of frothed milk that he just made. “Get to work before I make you do all the orders for the next three hours, Cho Kyuhyun”

 

ɅV

 

“Lee Donghae!”

 

 _Uh oh._ It was never a good thing when his brother was calling him by his full name.

 

“Lee Donghae, there you are! Why aren’t you coming to the meeting?” Sungmin asked as he barged into his room. Donghae looked up at his brother and noticed his brunet brother’s angry blue eyes.

 

Donghae groaned as he put down his comic book. “Meetings are boring.”

 

“And you rather spend time lying on your bed reading comic books?” Sungmin fumed.

 

“Yes.”

 

“You are such a little kid.” Sungmin scoffed. “How can you act like this when you will be crowned king in the future?”

 

Donghae rolled his eyes and got off his bed. “I won’t become king if I don’t find a wife to marry.”

 

“I am quite surprised that you are not married yet despite I see you with at least ten different girls every day. Plus, you can’t avoid it forever, Hae. Leaving the throne empty doesn’t serve any good.”

 

“What are you talking about? I hang out with girls not because I want to find a wife, but for fun and all. Also, Loriah is safe anyways. The Council is doing a fine job keeping it that way.”

 

Sungmin sighed. “I know that you know, Donghae. An empire without a king is no empire. I gave my right to sit on the throne to you because I believe you have the potential and you deserve it, not me. The Council wouldn't keep Loriah safe forever.”

 

Donghae was silent for a while. “I just need time.” He muttered.

 

Sungmin stared deeply into his eyes. He knew what Donghae was thinking about. “I understand. I will tell the officials that you are not feeling well, okay? But you must come next time. This is your fifth time this month.” Sungmin said and left.

 

Donghae didn’t move for a good five minutes before he left his room as well. He fixed his black bangs before walking out into the garden. Nodding slightly at the servants that passed by him, he walked around the crystal-clear pond and disappeared behind a bush of blue roses. Before him was a cliff that looked out to the capital city under the sunset. A gentle river flowed over the edge and dumped into the pool below.

 

Donghae plopped down on the grass, not caring that his silk robes got dirtied. He refused for any requests that wanted to remove the rose bush because it hid his favorite spot in the garden. Donghae usually went there to relax by himself as no one else knew about this spot.

 

_No one else…_

 

Donghae shook his head to get rid of the bad thoughts. Despite being just over a thousand years old, he still was unsure if he could become the king. He was a terrified of the idea to rule over multiple galaxies and maintain peace with neighboring empires, despite the fact that Loriah had never been in war for almost a millennium due to its peacekeeping and resources. Even though Sungmin assured that he will be a great leader, Donghae kept avoiding it.

 

_“An empire without a king is not an empire.”_

 

“Something on your mind, Your Highness?”

 

Donghae was startled by the sudden voice. Before he could turn around and identify the intruder, the other locked one arm firmly around his neck, preventing him to move his head. A cloth was clamped right in his face, and Donghae had no choice to breathe through the fabric in his struggle.

 

As he fought, Donghae slowly began to lose consciousness as he breathed the odorless substance on the cloth. His pull on the arm around his neck weakened and he could hear the sneer behind his ear.

 

“Goodbye, Prince Donghae.” The other whispered in Donghae’s ear as his vision faded to black.

 

ɅV

 

Hyukjae hummed his favorite song as he took out the garbage to the back of the cafe. The day was finally over and the best friends were left with the usual mess to clean up. On the bright side, it was the end of the week and Hyukjae could relax for the weekend. The owner was very picky on the tidiness of the cafe, and Hyukjae wouldn’t complain because he was very picky on cleaning as well.

 

Kyuhyun on the hand, was a disaster. Hyukjae had to tolerate the other’s messy behavior and clean up after the other. Now working in the cafe, Kyuhyun just vaguely mopped the floor and always forgot to clean the coffee machines.

 

“Hyukkie.” Kyuhyun whined. Hyukjae knew Kyuhyun was up to no good when the other said that specific nickname.

 

“You want me to finish cleaning?” Hyukjae deadpanned.

 

Kyuhyun nodded. “Why do you try so hard? The owner said he won’t be back today.”

 

“And let him fire us when he does come back to check?” Hyukjae retorted. “Besides, I like to clean.”

 

“You are becoming just like him.” Kyuhyun muttered. “Anyways, thanks! I will treat you with food someday.”

 

Hyukjae snorted as the other skipped off. “I pamper people too much.”

 

After Hyukjae finished cleaning the rest of the cafe, night has fallen and it started to rain. Hyukjae was glad that he checked the weather report before he left his apartment that morning. He changed out of his uniform and put on his own clothes before grabbing the umbrella. Looking through the cafe one last time to see if he missed anything, he stepped outside into the rain.

 

Hyukjae always liked it when it rains. The ambient sound of rain hitting every surface that the droplets could find was calming after a day of work. He walked the usual path through the large park to his apartment and stopped at the large fountain that stood in the middle of the park. Hyukjae would always toss a coin for good luck on the next day.

 

He was about to leave when he suddenly heard a small, almost indiscernible whimper in the middle of the rain. Hyukjae looked around to find the source, but no avail as it was too dark. He fished out his phone from his pocket to open the flashlight. He walked around the circumference of the fountain until the flashlight beamed at a small lump of something black.

 

Cautious, Hyukjae walked over to check out what it is. He found that the lump was a small black puppy, and it was shivering against the cold, wet rain. Hyukjae didn’t think twice before he gently scoop up the small creature and carried it home.

 

Once he arrived at his apartment, Hyukjae kicked off his shoes and wrapped the puppy in a warm towel. He then placed it beside his fireplace to help warm the puppy even more.

 

Hyukjae was very worried for the puppy. He couldn’t believe that anyone would leave it out in the world like this. _Is it a stray?_

 

“You can rest here today.” Hyukjae said softly as if the puppy could understand him. “I can bring you to my sister tomorrow.”

 

The puppy whimpered before it opened its eyes a little. Hyukjae stumbled back once he saw them. Although he was sure that some dogs have blue eyes, but that pair of ocean blue eyes looked almost human.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...what do you guys think? Please comment below!
> 
> I am currently on a small hiatus because of real life stuff (which is why Thy Kingdom Come has not updated recently), but I will be back soon!
> 
> Don't worry, I'm writing both Thy Kingdom Come and this story! Just not as much. :)
> 
> (Both stories are available on AFF as well)
> 
> Kudos and comments appreciated!


	2. First Meeting

_“Hae, want to play hide and seek with me?”_

 

_“Hide and seek? We are not little kids anymore!”_

 

_The other pouted. “Please? I knew it’s your favorite game!”_

 

_Donghae snorted. “More like yours, not me.”_

 

_“Pretty please? It’s not like there are others watching us.”_

 

_“…Fine. One round.”_

 

_“I knew you would play.” His older brother gave him a warm smile. They were sitting in the little pavilion beside the pond. “Okay, I hide first. Count to ten! Slowly!”_

 

_Donghae rolled his eyes. “One, two, three…”_

 

ɅV

 

Everything felt heavy. Donghae couldn’t even open his eyes as he woke and felt something cold and wet splattering on him.

 

_Rain._

 

He didn’t know what to do. Whose voice did that belong to? It was somehow familiar but so…foreign? Ominous and dark too.

 

Donghae struggled to move his limbs as he felt so powerless. Whatever the person made him breathe in, it must have drained his energy as well.

 

Then he heard someone approaching. He tried to call out but his mouth wouldn’t work properly, resulted in something more like a whimper. It took a few moments before he felt something warm covering him and scooping him off the ground. Donghae realized that there was something, or _someone_ , big carrying him. In a few minutes, the sound of the rain faded and Donghae was greeted by a breeze of warm air. From there it got warmer and warmer.

 

_Where am I?_

 

He tried with all his strength, grunting a little from the effort. When he finally managed to crack his eyelids open a little, he was stunned.

 

_Everything is so…huge!_

 

Donghae was wrapped around in a giant towel near an enormous fireplace. The fire inside rose almost triple his height. However, what the most startling thing was the giant bending his knees, looking down at him.

 

The giant widened his eyes a little and stumbled back. Despite the entity looked scary with his enormous size, Donghae believed that the other was actually quite good-looking. The blonde hair, pointy nose, eye wrinkles, brown eyes, sharp jawline…

 

Donghae shook away those thoughts and tried to move his arms again. This time, the arms finally responded. He managed to pull them out of the wraps of the blanket and was surprised to see paws.

 

_I’m in my canine form?!_

 

_Okay, so maybe the blond is not a giant at all. It’s just me being small._

 

Struggling, Donghae managed to kick the blanket away from his body and tried to focus in order to change back to his usual form, but he was still weak.

 

The blond figure was observing him with his still-wide eyes. Then he came out of his sense and tried to put Donghae back into the blanket.

 

_Let me go!_

 

Donghae wanted to scream out so the other would stop, however how he let out was a bark. The blond was mumbling in a language that Donghae didn’t know, but he could understand that the other was trying to calm him down.

 

_I’m not a damn puppy!_

 

With that, Donghae closed his eyes again and imagined his normal form. He knew it worked when an uncomfortable warmth spread through him and his body expanded in size.

 

The blond yelped and fell on the floor the second time. By the time Donghae finished his transformation, the other was ready to bolt out of the room.

 

“Whoa! Wait! Don’t run!” Donghae shouted. His robe was still on him (thankfully), although it was a bit soggy from the rain. His hair was a complete mess and there was dirt everywhere on him.

 

The other looked terrified yet confused. Donghae could see then that the blond was actually not that tall. He would just be a little over Donghae’s head if the stranger stood up.

 

The blond spoke again in the unknown language. Donghae could tell that he was asking a question. Probably “Who in the world are you?”

 

Donghae frowned. Even though he studied many if not all languages that were spoken in the empire, the blond was speaking one that he has never heard of before.

 

_Does that mean I’m not in Loriah anymore?_

 

“Come here.” Donghae said. When the other didn’t respond, Donghae simply did a hand motion to gesture the other to come closer. The blond slowly stood up and shakily walked towards him, eyes still filled with fear and confusion.

 

Donghae placed his hand on the blonde’s forehead and concentrated. It took much more than usual and Donghae grunted with the effort. “Okay…do you understand me now?”

 

The other’s eyes shot up. “Yeah. What did you do?”

 

“Just a little magic.”

 

“Magic?” The brown eyes furrowed.

 

“Yes, magic…don’t you know it?” Now it's Donghae’s turn to be confused.

 

“Magic doesn’t exist.”

 

“Sure it does, you just watched me change from a little puppy.”

 

“No, it doesn’t.” The blond snorted, but Donghae noticed the other suddenly looked very uncomfortable. “It’s all just tricks to the eye.”

 

“Then how do you explain what just happened?”

 

“Well…” The blond waved his hand in exasperation. “I don’t know, I’m not a magician.”

 

“Whatever.” Donghae huffed. Then he remembered that he was supposed to be a prince, so he did his best to put on the expression that he used whenever he went out of the palace to visit the commoner areas. “I would like you to escort me backed to my palace.”

 

The brown eyes blinked. “What?”

 

“I think you understand what I just said.”

 

“No, I don’t understand.” The blond said. “What palace? Korea has long abandoned the whole monarchy thing. Are you cosplaying?”

 

“Cosplaying? Korea?” Donghae pronounced the words carefully. Those words didn’t get translated over to Lorian. Also, how dare a mere commoner talk to him like that?

 

“I demand you to escort me to the palace. You still have a chance for me to revoke your punishment to talk rudely to me.”

 

The blond tilted his head in curiosity. “Okay, so obviously you are not Korean based on the way you talk. The only monarchy I could think of is the United Kingdom, but you don’t look British at all. Who are you? Where are you from? What language are you speaking?”

 

“I am Prince Donghae, from the Empire of Loriah. Speaks Lorian. Does that answer your questions?”

 

“Yes and no. What the fuck is Loriah and Lorian? There is not a country or language on Earth named that?” The blond was starting to look irritated.

 

Donghae was absolutely outraged that the blond dared to speak so rudely at him, but he froze when the other spoke the last sentence. “Earth?”

 

“Yeah, Earth. What are you, an alien?”

 

Any angry and confused thoughts that Donghae was thinking of was gone at that moment. Donghae shivered a little from the sudden chill that he got.

 

_I’m on Earth._

 

ɅV

 

Hyukjae watched as the so-called “prince” retreated away from him a little.

 

 _What did I say that got him scared? He looked so haughty a moment ago_. Although Hyukjae was nice and all, but he really didn’t appreciate the other being so arrogant when he just rescued the other from the rain. He freaked out when the other transformed from a little puppy to something more like a human being.

 

_Never thought magical stuffs are real until now._

 

“Um, are you okay?”

 

The other didn’t say anything but he continued to back away from Hyukjae. His eyes were full of fear and…anger?

 

“Dude, what’s wrong with you? You look like I’m about to kill you or anything.”

 

The ocean blue eyes widened.

 

_Does he really think that I would kill him?_

 

“Okay bad joke. Look, man. I’m sorry that I said anything that made you afraid. I promise that I never wanted to harm you or anything. I just thought you were some poor little puppy lost in the rain.” Hyukjae said. “How about tomorrow I try and help get you back to…wherever Loriah is? From the way you reacted, I could tell that you are not from Earth and lived somewhere else. It’s now late at night and it’s still pouring rain outside.”

 

The prince slowly nodded.

 

“Good, now go take a shower, you stink.”

 

Those eyes instantly flared. “How dare you-”

 

“Oh, shut up. You are not even from this world, so why would I call you ‘Prince Donghae’? I only acknowledge the ones confirmed by people.” Hyukjae rolled his eyes. “Plus, tomorrow you would be gone anyways, and by the looks of you now you probably don’t have the energy to kill me or anything. Just enjoy a night of teasing, will you? You would forget about me anyways when you go back to wherever you came from.”

 

“Fine.” The prince snarled. “What’s your name?”

 

“What?”

 

“You heard me.”

 

“Hyukjae. Why do you want my name?”

 

“So that I could curse you for an eternity.” Donghae stomped off.

 

“You are going the wrong way, that’s the kitchen.”

 

Donghae’s cheeks flushed before he hurried towards the opposite direction. “I know that.”

 

Hyukjae watched the prince rushed into the bathroom and slammed the door shut. His mind was thinking about the brilliant ocean eyes, wondering why a certain memory was coming back to haunt him again.

 

ɅV

 

It was the longest shower that Donghae had ever took, mostly because it was so different from the ginormous bathroom he used back in his palace. He could only stand and not walk around in the shower (Donghae never thought that one could shower while standing in a bathtub), he almost tripped over the toilet that was right beside the shower. Also, since when did a shower had only one turning handle to control the heat?

 

_Earth is really a strange place. Dangerous too._

 

Of all the places that he could end up, it just had to be Earth.

 

When Donghae was done, he looked around to find a towel to dry himself but stopped to think that he didn’t want to dirty Hyukjae’s things. He may be a haughty prince, but Donghae never took use of other’s things without permission.

 

He closed his eyes to concentrate and sighed in satisfaction when he felt the water droplets evaporated from his skin. Donghae then took the dirty silk robe in the shower and washed off most of the dirt, but he didn’t have enough energy to dry it completely after using it on himself.

 

_Crap, how am I going to sleep in damp clothes?_

 

A sudden knock came from the door. “Hey. You could wear my clothes for the night. I will sleep in the living room and you can sleep on my bed.”

 

“I don’t-”

 

“-want to wear my clothes? Fine, you could walk around naked if you want.”

 

Donghae let out an offended yelp but he didn’t yell any insults afterwards, knowing Hyukjae had already walked away.

 

He opened the door just a little to grab the pile of clothes that Hyukjae left for him on the floor. Donghae gingerly put them on and grunted in disgust when he saw himself in the mirror. He hung his damp robes on the drying rack before he left for the bedroom.

 

Donghae bumped into Hyukjae in the hallway. The other had changed into a sleeveless shirt and simple shorts, so that Donghae could see Hyukjae was very lean and fit from the defining muscles that were exposed.

 

He shook his head. _What in the world are you thinking, Lee Donghae?_

 

The blond looked up and down on him. “So, you managed to work your way around the bathroom without getting lost? I’m quite surprised that a prince like you knows the stuff. And in all honesty, you actually look pretty good in normal human clothes.”

 

_“Human”? That’s what they call themselves?_

 

“Whatever.” Donghae huffed and continued walking. “I do know these stuffs because I don’t always lie around in my palace.”

 

“So that’s how you got here on Earth?”

 

Donghae paused, remembering that voice before he blacked out. However, he didn’t say anything because it had nothing to do with Hyukjae. He plopped down on the bed and somehow fell asleep really quickly.

 

When the next morning came, Donghae got up to the wonderful smell of breakfast. He stumbled into the kitchen to find Hyukjae cooking something. “Hi.”

 

“Oh, you’re awake.” Hyukjae greeted. “Nice hair, Donghae.”

 

“Can you not be like this so early?” Donghae said as he sat down on the table by the kitchen. He had given up on insisting the blond to talk to him formally.

 

“I just want to enjoy my time, you know. Teasing a prince is a once-in-a-lifetime experience.” Hyukjae smirked as he hands Donghae a plate of food.

 

Donghae looked down at his plate. “Grilled cheese sandwich?”

 

“Yep, and milk is in the fridge if you want. Although I only have strawberry ones. Is this food not fine enough for you, your highness?”

 

Donghae ignored the false tone of formality. “Shut up.” He was a little surprised at how Earth have the similar food as Loriah.

 

_Wow, I just had my first meal on Earth. And it’s a sandwich._

 

Donghae gobbled up the food and walked over to put the plate in the sink. The motion caused him to lean close towards Hyukjae, who was eating his own sandwich standing up.

 

“Can you back away a little? You are getting to close.”

 

“Oh, sorry.” Donghae immediately backed off. He then blinked, it was the first time he said sorry of anything to anyone except his family and royal subjects.

 

_What in the world is going on with you, Donghae?_

 

_Also, is Hyukjae…blushing?_

 

“Let’s go after I get my robes then?” Donghae said, the air was getting a little awkward.

 

“Uh, yeah, sure.” Hyukjae said as he walked briskly into his bedroom to change.

 

Donghae went to the bathroom and was glad to find the silk robe completely dry. He changed clothes and put Hyukjae’s clothes on the pile of dirty clothes (or the pile that Donghae assumed to be) beside a rather large strange-looking metal box.

 

They walked out of Hyukjae’s apartment and found the streets rather deserted. It was foggy and the morning sun was shining dimly behind the layer of water droplets.

 

“How do you get back to your world?” Hyukjae asked as they walked through the park.

 

“Any reflective surface could do to make a portal, but I prefer surfaces of water.” Donghae said as they reached the fountain, where Hyukjae told him that he found him here. The fountain was not spraying water so the surface was still like a mirror. “Well, goodbye then. Don’t mention me to anyone.”

 

“Why would I mention you?” Hyukjae rolled his eyes. “Now get out of here.”

 

Donghae placed his hand on the water and visualized his home, the palace.

 

Nothing happened.

 

“Having trouble?” Hyukjae asked.

 

“Yeah. Just give me a moment.” Donghae let out a deep breath and tried again. Nothing happened.

 

“Why isn’t this working?” Donghae yelled.

 

“Shush! You are too loud.” Hyukjae hissed as an old lady passed by. She frowned at them, probably Donghae was shouting in an unknown language in the middle of a park.

 

“But what’s going on? Why can’t I open a portal?”

 

“I don’t know, why are you asking me?”

 

Donghae tried again and again, but every time it would only result in a normal fountain in front of him. He tried until he was exhausted from focusing so much and stepped back as reality finally hit him.

 

_I am stuck here on Earth._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...yeah, Donghae is stuck with Hyukjae (but we like that, right?).
> 
> Not fully back from hiatus yet but I am starting to get more free time to write :)
> 
> This story is also available on [AFF](https://www.asianfanfics.com/story/view/1353680/h--ven-angst-donghae-eunhae-eunhyuk-fantasy-fluff-romance-haehyuk)
> 
> Kudos and comments appreciated!


	3. Tea and Coffee

Hyukjae watched as the other man kicked the fountain in frustration. From what he saw, he figured that whatever magic the prince tried to do had failed.

 

“Um…so it didn’t work?”

 

The prince stopped what he was doing. “It didn’t. Why am I stuck in this stupid place?”

 

Hyukjae didn’t know what to say. He didn’t really like it when Donghae called his favorite spot to relax as a “stupid place”, but the pair of blue eyes looked absolutely miserable under the black bangs. “Let’s go back home for now? You are getting a lot of attention.”

 

Donghae looked around. Sure enough, everybody who passed by them was giving him a weird stare. Hyukjae can’t blame them though, as Donghae was the only one wearing a fancy silk robe and kicking the fountain.

 

When they arrived back home, Donghae flopped down on a sofa and buried his face in his hands. Hyukjae quietly snuck into the kitchen and prepared some tea for the other.

 

He brought the tea set to his living room where Donghae was sitting. “Here, have some tea.” Hyukjae said. “It will help calm you down a bit.”

 

Donghae gingerly picked up a cup and blew over the surface. He carefully sipped the content. “Thanks.”

 

Hyukjae stared at those ocean eyes. They were sad and scared, trembling as they stared at the tea leaves swirling around in the cup. Hyukjae figured that it wasn’t the best time to tease the other. “Look, I’m really sorry that you can’t go home, but we can think of something, right? Maybe you are still too weak to travel. You don’t have anywhere else to go so should stay here and take a few days to rest.”

 

Donghae sipped more tea before he finally replied. “Sorry if I’m a nuisance.”

 

“No, it’s fine.” It really wasn’t much of a problem. There was enough space for both of them to live and Hyukjae could just sleep on the couch. The only thing that he needed to consider was he would need to spend more money on food. “May I ask…why are you so scared. I mean, I get that you are sad, but you looked so afraid ever since I mentioned that you are now on Earth.”

 

Donghae shuddered against the word “Earth”. Hyukjae watched the other’s index fingers rubbed against the ceramic cup as he calmed down. “Everyone is afraid of this place.”

 

“By everyone, you mean everybody in Loriah?”

 

“Everyone as in all empires in the universe.” Donghae said. “No one would ever travel to this place unless they have a death wish.”

 

“Wait, there are other empires out there?” Hyukjae asked incredulously. “None of the scientists here on Earth discovered any lifeforms out there.”

 

“It’s because we chose to settle as far away from Earth as possible. No empires expanded their region too close to the galaxy neighborhood where Earth is located. We also concealed ourselves with magic.”

 

“But why? Why is everyone so afraid?”

 

“No one has ever made it back to wherever they came from once they came here.” Donghae said. “There are so many rumors about how dangerous and hostile Earth is. Inhabitants of Earth apparently have really short lifetime.”

 

“Well, how old are you?”

 

“A bit more than a thousand.”

 

Hyukjae blinked. “You’re right on the last one. Human lives are pretty short comparing to your age. Our average life expectancy is seventy.”

 

“It is also rumored that Earth is the closest place in the living world to the land of the dead.” Donghae said, his voice was no more than a whisper by that point. “Many believed that it was the reason why Earth is so dangerous.”

 

“I don’t know about that.” Hyukjae frowned. “There are many bad things that could happen every day, but we just live our lives normally until the day we die. Also, land of the dead? It doesn’t think that is true because I don’t see ghosts walking around.”

 

Donghae furrowed his eyebrows. “Don’t you feel it?”

 

“Feel…what?”

 

“The cold and heavy feeling.”

 

Hyukjae was confused. The sun was shining bright and high outside the window. “Not really. But then again, us humans don’t have magical powers like you do.”

 

Donghae tilted his head in curiosity. “Interesting. That cold and heavy feeling of the dead is everywhere, but I don’t see any hostile beings…I wonder why the Almighty created you humans.”

 

“Almighty?”

 

“The Almighty created all life forms. He created people, but somehow you humans don’t have magic like the rest of us. Everyone in other empires have some sort of abilities, but I sense none here on Earth. All people in other empires live much longer than you as well.”

 

Hyukjae imagined about how the religious groups would flip when they heard Donghae’s words. At least they were right about something powerful that created the world. “Should I take offense of this?”

 

“What? No!” Donghae jumped back a little, accidentally spilling some tea on the floor. “Don’t hurt me…”

 

“For goodness sake, I told you that I won’t harm you or anything yesterday!” Hyukjae said. “Chill, will you?”

 

“You won’t kill me?”

 

“What reason would I have to kill a prince from another world?” Hyukjae scoffed. “Go finish the tea, I’ll make lunch.”

 

Hyukjae shuffled around in the kitchen, still processing the prince’s words. There are others out there? Human-like creatures? Earth is close to the dead?

 

_My weekend couldn’t have gotten any weirder._

 

ɅV

 

“Hyukjae?”

 

Donghae called out to the human in the kitchen. He was not used to addressing anyone so casually other than his brother, but it seems like humans called each other this way so Donghae decided to go along with it.

 

“Yes?”

 

“Do you have any more tea?”

 

Hyukjae turned from the stove. “I do, you want more?”

 

Donghae nodded. Hyukjae went over to one of the cupboards and brought out a container. “You seem to like the tea.” Hyukjae said as he dumped some of the dried material and filled it with hot water.

 

Donghae watched as the lovely reddish-brown color seeped out of the leaves. “I do like a good beverage. And I really like the taste. Chamomile and rose?”

 

“Yep, I made the blend myself. Helps me relieve some of the stress from work.” Hyukjae said as he went back to making lunch.

 

Donghae sipped the tea again, wondering how Hyukjae made the tea taste so good despite only using two ingredients. _A power of human?_

 

“No, not everyone can make something taste good.”

 

Donghae looked at the other. “You can read minds?”

 

“Well, no. I just read your expression.” Hyukjae said. “Making good tea is not a power, dummy. If you want to make or do something good, then you got to put in effort for it. Both Chamomile and rose tea could be used to calm down or relieve stress, but I thought of making something better.”

 

Donghae noticed Hyukjae was back to his teasing personality. “You like to make tea?”

 

“Sort of.” Hyukjae said. “I want to open a cafe.”

 

“Cafe?”

 

“Yeah, I’m kind of obsessed with making drinks and little treats, so why not?”

 

Hyukjae was smiling by that point. Donghae never thought someone could look so innocent and happy. He didn’t understand what’s so good about being a cafe owner, he is a prince after all.

 

“Why a cafe? You could try to find something that could give you more wealth and power.”

 

Hyukjae frowned at what Donghae said. “I don’t want wealth and power though. I’m just following my dream.”

 

“But-”

 

“But what? Being free is much better than wealth or power. Why would I live a life where I have to do this and that?”

 

Donghae didn’t know how to answer that. For a thousand years, he performed his duty as a prince, so being “free to do whatever he wants” would never even have been an option for him. He was born with the wealth and power, he had everything that he needed.

 

“I understand that being someone in the royal family would have their duties and things,” Hyukjae said. “but would you like to follow what you have to do, or have the ability to do something that makes you happy, my prince?”

 

“I don’t know. I never thought of doing something I liked.” Donghae said with a blank face. “I don’t have a dream to follow.”

 

“Sure you do. You just have to follow what your heart desires.” Hyukjae said. “Now move your arms, I’m putting the food down.”

 

Donghae removed his arms from the table as Hyukjae put down the plates of food. They ate the food in silence, which let Donghae think about what the blond said.

 

“Hey, don’t it so seriously, eh?” Hyukjae said. He must had noticed that the prince looked distracted. “I know this is not what you usually think about.”

 

“I know, it’s just so…different.” Donghae said. “Are all people here on Earth think like this?”

 

“Well, I wouldn’t say all, but people make their own choices of living, like what they want to do, where they want to go.”

 

The more Hyukjae talked, the more Donghae became fascinated by how humans lived on Earth. It was so different from the Lorian tradition, there was so much freedom that could be seen.

 

Donghae let the blond talked more about what Earth was like, while he told the other about how Loriah was.

 

“…it was always bright and warm. The seasons are always mild so there is no extreme weather.” Donghae said. By that point they were finished eating lunch as Hyukjae was washing the dishes.

 

“Sounds like a nice place. The seasons here is different depending on where you are on this planet.” Hyukjae said. “Does everyone on Loriah have magic like you?”

 

“Yes, but the royal family is the most powerful.” Donghae said. “If any commoner came here, they would be powerless unlike me who still holds some abilities.”

 

“Hmm, I see…” Hyukjae said as he finished with the last plate. “Donghae?”

 

“Yes?”

 

“May I ask why are you so opened towards me? We just met last night and you were all jumpy and panicking.”

 

Donghae blinked. It was strange for him as well, since he never talked so freely to anyone besides Sungmin. However, looking at Hyukjae again, Donghae didn’t get the vibe of anything dangerous coming from the blond.

 

“Because I trust you that you won’t kill me.” He said quietly.

 

Hyukjae stared at him for a moment, then the lips slowly pulled apart and formed a warm gummy smile.

 

Donghae thought he liked that smile. A lot.

 

“Thanks for trusting me, I guess. Now, what do you want to do? I don’t have work since it’s the weekend.”

 

“Oh, um.” Donghae vaguely remembered that commoners on Loriah rests at home on some days. “What’s that?” He pointed to the living room where a black and reflective object on the wall.

 

“That’s called a TV, you can watch shows from there.” Hyukjae explained, but then he went on a thirty-minute lecture because Donghae didn’t know what “electronics” are.

 

“Seriously, is Loriah ancient?” Hyukjae said in the end.

 

“How dare you call us ancient, rude human!” Donghae scowled.

 

“You guys don’t even have electronics! Your empire is so undeveloped.”

 

Donghae had never felt so offended like this in his lifetime. “Undeveloped? You are undeveloped because you humans don’t even have magic!”

 

“Says the person who was terrified of humans and never seen a TV in his life!” Hyukjae said before he raised two hands. “You know what? Whatever, let’s just forget this and watch TV. It’s the weekend and I want to relax. I’ll be right back after I make my coffee.”

 

Donghae blinked. “What’s coffee?”

 

Hyukjae stared at him.

 

_Is he serious?_

 

“Oh boy.”

 

ɅV

 

“Seriously, you don’t have coffee beans on Loriah?”

 

The prince was busy studying and sniffing the bag of roasted beans. “Nope.”

 

Hyukjae found that the way Donghae was sniffing the bag was kind of cute. The action reminded him of a little curious puppy.

 

“I can’t believe that you are missing out on the greatest thing in the world.” Hyukjae muttered. “Give me that.”

 

Donghae handed him the bag and let him dumped some of the content in his coffee grinder. Hyukjae closed the lid and turned the handle, grinding the beans into fine powder. He poured out the powder onto a coffee filter that sat on a cone above the coffeepot. Hyukjae then drained hot water from a kettle slowly over the grounded coffee in a smooth clockwise motion.

 

Hyukjae noticed that Donghae was watching every move that he was doing. “Seems like you are interested.”

 

“Of course I am, I never knew what coffee is before. Is it ready yet?”

 

“Be patient.” Hyukjae said as he poured some of the content into a mug. “Here. Careful, it’s hot.”

 

The prince took a little sip and his eyes widened. “Wow.”

 

“Do you like it?”

 

“A lot.” Donghae said as he drank some more. “It’s bitter, but also a little sweet. I feel a lot more awake as well.”

 

“It’s because of the bean I used. Different beans from different parts of the Earth have their own unique flavors. You feel awake because of the substance caffeine in the coffee, which energizes you briefly.” Hyukjae said as he poured some in his own mug. He looked up and found that Donghae’s cup was empty.

 

Hyukjae laughed. “Do you like it that much?”

 

“I want more. This is like a high-quality drink.”

 

“Not really.” Hyukjae snorted. “If I want to make a high-quality coffee, I would have to use some of the better ones I have and rinse the filter before I poured the grounded coffee. There was no need because there aren’t any important guests here.”

 

Donghae simply just glared at him. “I’m going to make your life miserable when I get my full power back.”

 

“Be happy that I didn’t use the cheap instant coffee, my dear prince. Also, be grateful that I did it by hand, not some machines.”

 

“Why not machines?”

 

“Do you want it to be done mechanically?”

 

“Well no, but seeing all those ‘electronics’ around, do they have one for making coffee?”

 

“We do, but I never liked them.” Hyukjae said. “Coffee machines generally only has one setting so that the unique characteristics of different beans would be lost. If you want to bring out the true taste of each, you would have to change the finesse of the grinding, the water temperature, and how you would pour it. Making coffee is not a simple, same goes with tea.”

 

Donghae sipped his second cup of coffee. “I suppose so. It’s like being a king, but you lost your individuality because people expects you to be what they want to see.”

 

Hyukjae was about to ask why Donghae compared a coffee machine to a king when he caught the slight change of expression.

 

“Let’s watch TV then? I will let you pick a show. Since you could be here on Earth for a while, you can learn to read a little Korean so that you don’t have to rely on me.”

 

Donghae nodded and followed Hyukjae into the living room. Hyukjae wondered what’s bothering the prince so much. _Does he not like to be a king?_

 

ɅV

 

_“Hyuk, want to play hide and seek with me?”_

_“Hide and seek? We already had ten rounds today!”_

_Kyuhyun pouted. “Please? We still got time before the sun sets!”_

_Hyukjae was unsure. “Our moms will get worried if we don’t go now.”_

_“Pretty please? We don’t get to play that often when we were not on vacation.”_

_“…Fine. One round.”_

_“I knew you would play.” His best friend gave him a warm smile. They were standing by the sea wall, the waves calmly hit the stones in a regular pace. “Okay, I hide first. Count to ten! Slowly!”_

_Hyukjae rolled his eyes. “One, two, three…”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man, I do like parallelism :)
> 
> Also I'm a little late, but happy Eunhae Day everyone!
> 
> This story is also available on [AFF](https://www.asianfanfics.com/story/view/1353680/h--ven-angst-donghae-eunhae-eunhyuk-fantasy-fluff-romance-haehyuk)
> 
> Kudos and comments appreciated!


	4. The Missing

_Hyukjae was kneeling on the ground. It had begun to rain, but he could barely feel it comparing to the pain and fear in his heart._

_He was too late._

_“Hyuk?”_

_It was Kyuhyun’s voice._

_“Hyukjae? There you are, I was looking all over for you! You never came to find-”_

_Kyuhyun stopped. Like Hyukjae, he was completely soaked since he didn’t bring an umbrella as well._

_They both stared at the ground before them, both felt the sadness from the heartbreaking sight._

 

ɅV

 

To say that Donghae was scared was an understatement.

 

He let out an unmanly scream and ran away from the living room when he saw the black-and-white movie of a train approaching the screen at a rapid pace, only to trip on his silk robe and faceplant on the floor with a thud. They were watching a documentary on the history of movies. Hyukjae was laughing on the couch because Donghae’s reaction was identical to the audience’s on the screen.

 

“I never thought that you would scream like a girl.” Hyukjae said, still laughing while holding his stomach.

 

“Shut up.” Donghae grumbled as he got up from the floor. His heart was still beating like crazy from the train. In all honesty, his heart had not calmed down fully ever since Hyukjae turned on the TV, which was an hour or so ago. The things happened in the screen seemed so _real_.

 

“You should get something else to wear.” Hyukjae pointed out. “Go to my closet and pick out some clothes for yourself.”

 

Donghae cursed under his breath as he walked away to Hyukjae’s bedroom. He couldn’t believe that he just let Hyukjae order him around. As a crown prince, he couldn’t help but feeling some of his dignity disintegrated away.

 

“Why do I have to be stuck with him?” Donghae sighed. Hyukjae was nothing but annoying to him, although he must admit that the tea and coffee which the blond made was quite tasty.

 

As he walked into the room, Donghae couldn’t help but to wonder around. He never gotten a chance to focus on the place’s interior details since he was busy thinking of going back home. It was simple, like the rest of the place. Aside from the bed, the room had several paintings hanging on the wall, showing a variety of landscapes that definitely didn’t look like Loriah. Donghae was fascinated that the paintings looked so _real_ , since all the arts painted arts he had seen in the empire could never be as detailed as these.

 

In the corner of the room stood a table with a chair, where Hyukjae had quite a few mysterious things on the surface. There was a painting, detailed like the ones on the wall, of Hyukjae and several people that Donghae could presume was his family. A large, black, rectangular object that could open and displayed a screen similar to the TV. There were three drawers filled with different stuff: top drawer that had sheets of paper written in a language that he didn’t know, middle had a variety of utensils for writing and drawing, and the bottom had a bottle and a box of something similar to paper, but softer and thinner.

 

He took off his robes and searched the closet, but was completely stumped because he knew nothing of human clothing or fashion. Donghae then remembered how the humans wore on the TV, so he rummaged through the neat piles of fabric and found himself some clothes that matches with the ones in TV.

 

“Donghae, are you done? It’s been like ten minutes already.” Came a familiar voice. Donghae turned around to see the blond walking into the bedroom. Hyukjae glanced at him and choked. “What in the world are you wearing!?”

 

Donghae looked down. He was wearing a black shirt with no sleeves and low-cut armholes plus a short, in contrast to Hyukjae’s woolly long-sleeves and comfy-looking pants. “I don’t know what to where, so I just followed what the guy on the TV was wearing.”

 

Hyukjae’s cheeks was flushed red. “You don’t wear something from a gym commercial everywhere, you idiot! It’s October and you will get a cold!”

 

The blond had a point. The outfit he was wearing pretty much exposed a majority of his body, especially with the low-cut armholes. It felt a little chilly as well.

 

“Hey, it’s not my fault that I don’t know anything about Earth clothes.” Donghae complained as Hyukjae began to rummage through the mess that Donghae created.

 

“Here, wear this.” Hyukjae tossed him a long-sleeve with a hood and pants. “Go to the bathroom and change while I clean up this mess.”

 

Donghae huffed and went to the bathroom. He hesitantly put on the clothes and found that it was very comfy. The hooded long-sleeve and grey pants were hanging loosely on his body, yet they insulated his body heat so that it was very warm. Slowly, Donghae’s anger at the blonde’s teasing and behavior faded, and he felt a little bit apologetic that he treated Hyukjae’s closet like his own. He never had to care about messes as there were always servants to clean them up. Despite all the teasing, Hyukjae actually looked out for him. He took Donghae out from the rain and gave him a place to eat and sleep so that Donghae wouldn’t die out there in the unknown.

 

Maybe getting stuck with the blond wasn’t too bad after all.

 

ɅV

 

With one last sigh, Hyukjae folded the last article of clothing and placed it on the shelf. He heard a door opened and soft footsteps. He turned around and found Donghae standing there, properly dressed this time.

 

“Much better.” Hyukjae said. His mind flashbacked to the moment he almost had a heart attack when he saw the other wearing the black tank-top, which revealed _all_ of that muscles underneath the fabric since the armhole was cut so low.

 

 _Pretty fit for a thousand-year-old dude_. He thought. _Great, I living with a magical ripped grandfather._

 

He noticed that the prince looked a little distracted. “Donghae, what’s wrong?”

 

“I-I just want to say-” Donghae stammered, but he was interrupted by a sudden knock on the front door.

 

“Hyuk, are you there?” A very familiar voice rang out.

 

Hyukjae’s widened. “Kyuhyun? What are you doing here?”

 

“Can’t your best friend come visit? That’s so mean of you.” Replied a very sarcastic voice. Hyukjae knew Kyuhyun was rolling his eyes behind the door. “Hurry and open the door!”

 

Hyukjae spun his head to look at Donghae, who was frozen on the spot. “Don’t just stand there, hide!” He hissed so that Kyuhyun wouldn’t hear.

 

“Where?” Donghae retorted back with an equally quiet voice.

 

“I don’t know! Transform into a puppy or something and hide-”

 

“Hyukjae, open up!”

 

“Fuck my life.” Hyukjae cursed and pulled Donghae into the bedroom. Before Donghae could say a single word, Hyukjae spoke in a rapid pace. “Quick, work some magic and make yourself out of sight.”

 

He quickly closed the door and went out to greet Kyuhyun. “Hi-did you dye your hair!?”

 

“Do you like it?” Kyuhyun smiled. “I dyed it brown because I don’t want to try something that involves bleaching my hair yet.”

 

“It looks great.” Hyukjae complimented. To be honest, he couldn’t see Kyuhyun adorning some wild-colored hair. The brunette hair fitted him perfectly.

 

“Hyuk, are you okay? Why are you out of breath?” Kyuhyun frowned when he noticed.

 

“Oh, I was just cleaning. I accidentally toppled a shelf in the closet and I had to clean up.” Hyukjae said as he let Kyuhyun into the apartment.

 

“So why did you close the bedroom door? Are you hiding something?” Kyuhyun asked, pointing towards the closed bedroom door.

 

“No, wait-”

 

With one yank, Kyuhyun flung open the door. Hyukjae started to mentally build a story of how a stranger with blue eyes ended up in his own bedroom.

 

“Huh, you did clean up very nicely though.” Kyuhyun’s voice came from the room.

 

Hyukjae slowly walked into his bedroom and found Kyuhyun lying on his bed. There were no signs of Donghae but Hyukjae noticed that the closet doors was shut. He let out a sigh of relief and turned to the man lying on his mattress. “Yah, I just cleaned it! Get your dirty clothes off my bed!”

 

Kyuhyun laughed and avoided Hyukjae’s assault while retreated to the living room. “Want to watch a movie?” He said as he flopped down on the couch.

 

“Uh, I have to go out soon to meet my parents, sorry.” Hyukjae lied.

 

“Aw, can I come? My parents are going out so I’m alone?” Kyuhyun pouted.

 

Hyukjae laughed. “You are not a little kid anymore, Kyu. My parents wants to take me somewhere, they said it’s a secret. Sorry.”

 

“That’s too bad.” Kyuhyun sighed. “I’m going to the mall tomorrow to look at the new games, so I guess I will see you Monday at work then?”

 

“Yeah, okay. Sorry for not hanging out with you though.” Hyukjae said as Kyuhyun got up from the couch. He watched as the last of the brown hair disappeared from his view as Kyuhyun walked out the door.

 

His shoulders relaxed and went to his bedroom. Hyukjae pulled open the closet door, but Donghae wasn’t there. “Donghae, where are you? You can come out now.”

 

Nothing happened for a few seconds until he saw a little black puppy crept out of the closet from behind one of the shelves. The puppy sneezed from the dust that was collected at the back of the closet.

 

Hyukjae laughed. “God, you’re cute when you are a puppy.”

 

Donghae said nothing and stared at him with a death glare.

 

“Come on, it’s safe now. You can change back to normal.”

 

Donghae shook his head. Hyukjae noticed that his legs were trembling slightly.

 

“Are you too weak to change back?”

 

Donghae nodded.

 

Hyukjae sighed. “Let’s wait until you regain the strength again. For now, want to watch a movie?”

 

Donghae tilted his head in curiosity at the word “movie”, but he followed Hyukjae to the living room nonetheless.

 

Hyukjae, on the other hand, deliberately chose a horror film so that Donghae’s heartbeat could do some serious beating.

 

ɅV

 

It wasn’t until late evening when Donghae finally managed the strength to return to normal. He was sitting in the kitchen, as far away from the TV as possible while Hyukjae washed the dishes. He finally lost it when the screen displayed a girl crawling sinisterly out of a TV, and it took Hyukjae an hour trying to coax Donghae to relax and apologize for making him watch the terrifying movie.

 

“Oh good, you’re back.” Hyukjae said.

 

“I will kill you next time if you play that movie one more time.” Donghae snarled.

 

“I said I was sorry for going over the line of teasing you. We will watch a better one next time, okay?” The blond said, trying to sooth him.

 

Donghae huffed. “Whatever. Who was that earlier anyways?”

 

“Oh, Kyuhyun? He’s my best friend, and the pain of my ass, since we were babies.” Hyukjae explained. “He’s very smart, but I would suggest staying away from him if you are not interest in computer games, or his speech on the magnificence, glory, and salvation of memes.”

 

“What did he say to you?”

 

Hyukjae looked confused. “Didn’t you hear what we talked about?”

 

“I understood what you said since I used my magic on you, but it was not a magic to learn a new language, only for translating between me and another person. It still sounded gibberish to me when Kyuhyun spoke.”

 

“I see. Maybe you should learn Korean, I can teach you tomorrow.”

 

Donghae considered. Learning an Earth language sounded cool. “Okay.”

 

“Anyways we should get ready for bed, it’s getting late.” Hyukjae said.

 

“Yeah…” Donghae said as he stared out the window. His eyes narrowed and stood up abruptly.

 

“Donghae? What’s wrong?” Hyukjae asked as Donghae strode to the window, looking up in the night sky.

 

“Where is it?” Donghae muttered to himself.

 

“Where’s what?” But Donghae didn’t hear the other.

 

_Where is it, where is it, where is it?_

 

“Donghae, seriously, what’s going on? You are freaking me out.” Hyukjae said, walking over to stare up at the night sky beside him.

 

“Where’s my star?” Donghae’s voice was barely above a whisper.

 

“What?” Hyukjae frowned, looking at the few stars twinkling in the dark sky.

 

“I can’t see my star.”

 

_If I can’t see it…I must be so far away from home._

 

“And…why is it important to you?” Hyukjae asked.

 

“It’s where most of my power comes from.” Donghae said. “Each member of the royal family is tied to a star in the constellation. I can regain or draw power from it, and it is most efficient if I am in the line of sight with it. My power, my strength, my identity, they all depend on my star…and now it’s gone.” He said sadly in the end.

 

Donghae felt an arm hesitantly wrapping around him. He turned to look at the blond, who was blushing a little from his own action. “Hey, it will be alright. We will find a way to get you home. Plus, I think the light pollution of the city might cause your missing star to be invisible. We would need to go far out into the countryside in order to see it.”

 

“Really?”

 

“Really.” Hyukjae said with a firm voice. “We will go out someday to see if we can find your star.”

 

Donghae just stood there for a while and let the blond hug him. The thin but strong arms around him felt comfortable and warm. “Thanks.”

 

Hyukjae hummed and let go of him. “Let’s go to sleep now?”

 

Donghae nodded and they both went to change clothes for bedtime (separately, of course). Hyukjae was about to leave for the couch after bid him goodnight, but Donghae stopped him.

 

“Why don’t you sleep on the bed as well? The couch is not that comfortable for sleeping.”

 

“What?” Hyukjae looked shocked and flustered at the same time. “You want me to…sleep with you?”

 

“I didn’t mean it that way.” Donghae said quickly, getting embarrassed by his own words. “Here.”

 

He stretched out one of his hand to the bed. After a few moments, an identical bed sprang out of existence at the other side of the bedroom. It was the least Donghae could do, as he should look out for Hyukjae as well when the other offered him hospitality.

 

“Oh wow, thanks.” Hyukjae said, but Donghae didn’t exactly had time to respond as he was hit with a wave nausea.

 

“Whoa there.” Hyukjae caught him. Again, Donghae felt the comfortable warmth and the nausea slowly cleared away. “You shouldn’t use your power so much anymore, it’s not good for you right now.”

 

“Okay.” Donghae said as he plopped down on the new bed. “I will try not to. Goodnight, Hyukjae.”

 

Hyukjae smiled. “Goodnight, Donghae.” He said as he slipped under his own blanket. They both fell asleep quickly, under the night sky with a few glittering stars.

 

ɅV

 

“Where did that stupid fish go?” Sungmin muttered under his breath. It was already noon and there was not a single trace of Donghae anywhere. He had checked the bedroom, the meeting room, and basically every corner of the palace, but no avail. He even went out of the palace to check with all the girls that he knew Donghae would hang out with, yet none of them had seen his brother.

 

_The garden maybe?_

 

He walked into the giant botany garden at the back of the palace. When they were still young, they would love to play games there for hours. However in the current situation, Donghae would like to go to the gardens to calm his mind.

 

Sungmin couldn’t blame him though, as the other was most affected one from the tragic event years ago. He didn’t see himself fit to be the king as he was more focused on the arts than leadership, while Donghae was the right choice by tradition and logic whether he liked it or not. The younger was suffocating from the stress and depression, yet he hid it so well from the rest of the palace.

 

“Donghae? Where are you?” Sungmin called out, but there was no response.

 

He approached the bush of blue roses that he knew so well. He sighed and transformed into a wolf so that he could pass under the thorny bush.

 

When he reverted back to his original form, he was staring at just an empty grassy opening on top of a cliff that looked out to the horizon. His worry was finally taking over his mind.

 

“Fuck.” He cursed under his breath.

 

Donghae was missing.

 

The future king that would rule over a quarter of the universe was missing.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yep, we are going stargazing in future chapters! But first let's see how they get together :)
> 
> This story is also available on [AFF](https://www.asianfanfics.com/story/view/1353680/h--ven-angst-donghae-eunhae-eunhyuk-fantasy-fluff-romance-haehyuk)
> 
> Kudos and comments appreciated! Thank you for all the support!


	5. Curiosity

The next day, Hyukjae woke up first to the light snoring from the other side of the room. He wondered who it was then he remembered it was the otherworldly prince. Slowly, Hyukjae rolled over and found Donghae curling up on his own bed with his eyes closed. The dark-haired prince looked very serene and peaceful, in contrast to the occasional frown and furrowed brows when he was awake.

 

Hyukjae thought about those brilliant blue irises behind the eyelids. He tried to think that the beautiful colour is something wonderful, but he couldn’t bring himself to stare at them without remembering that day. So instead, he stared at those thin lips as it will look no different from staring at the eyes from other’s perspective. It’s a trick that he learned while working at the cafe, since there were some customers trying to “distract” him from doing his job.

 

_But why is it not working?_

 

Every time he stared the lips, he was slowly drawn back to look at the mesmerizing colour no matter how hard he tried.

 

Just then, Donghae began to stir from his sleep so Hyukjae quickly got up and snuck out of the room. He was still in deep thoughts when he washed his face and looked in the mirror.

 

_It can’t be related…right?_

 

Sighing to himself in frustration, Hyukjae dismissed the thought and went to prepare breakfast.

 

ɅV

 

Quietly sipping his cup of coffee, Donghae peeked at the blond who was washing dishes. Hyukjae was strangely quiet and doesn’t seemed to want to look at him, which made him a little upset. Donghae liked to have some sort of attention and Hyukjae wasn’t really giving him any. Although he was slightly relieved that the other wasn’t teasing him, the atmosphere felt strange and empty.

 

“Hyukjae, is there something wrong?” Donghae asked.

 

“Hmm?” Hyukjae stared from the dishes. “What do you mean?”

 

“I don’t know, you are just so…quiet right now.”

 

“Oh. I was just thinking about some stuff. Don’t mind it.”

 

And he went back to cleaning.

 

_What’s wrong with him?_

 

“So, um, Hyukjae?” He tried again.

 

“Yes?”

 

“Can you teach me the language? You mentioned yesterday and you are probably right that I may be stuck here for some time.” Donghae said. “The magic I used to communicate with you only works for one person at a time, and it takes way too much energy to use it on everyone else here on Earth.”

 

“Oh, yeah. I guess I have time today.” Hyukjae said, putting the last few dishes on the drying rack. “Give me a few moments to grab some paper.”

 

Turns out, Donghae was relatively fast at learning Korean. His experience of travelling to different planets and learning the languages of their allies made him capable of mastering new languages quickly. In less than two hours, Donghae had fully learned the alphabets and phrasing of sentences. Now he was working on writing and pronouncing the words.

 

“You are doing great.” Hyukjae complimented him.

 

“Thanks.” Donghae said slowly in Korean, although it is still not very fluent and he had an accent. As a member of the royal Lee family, he got a little offended earlier when he found that the surname “Lee” was very common in South Korea. However, Hyukjae managed to calm him down saying that Earth is different from Loriah, and Donghae could blend-in very well in the society with the common surname.

 

“Also, should I address you as a same-age person then? It will raise suspicion as everyone had to call you in honorifics yet you look as young as me.”

 

“That’s fine with me.”

 

“Speaking of age…” Hyukjae thought. “When’s your birthday?”

 

“Huh? Birthday?” Donghae said, returning back to Lorian because it was easier. “Lorians don’t celebrate their birthdays since we live for so long…I don’t even remember mine.”

 

“What?!” Hyukjae looked completely shocked. “How can you not have a birthday? You _have_ to have a birthday!”

 

Donghae looked amusingly at Hyukjae. The way the blond said that was very cute and made his heart flutter a little. His eyes were wide open and lips apart in shock. “So can you make a birthday for me then?” He asked slowly in Korean.

 

“Hmm…How about the day I met you? October 15?”

 

“Sure.” Donghae said. He has yet to learn how the Earth year works but he was happy that Hyukjae was talking to him normally again. Donghae didn’t have anyone to talk to normally since forever as he was always in the palace or away on an important visit. Everyone was so formal and strict that the only person that he could talk casually to were his family members.

 

“Cool. Also, my birthday is April 4.” Hyukjae said with a smile. “Oh, I forgot to teach you the months and dates.”

 

Thus they went on for another hour of learning. By the time they call it a day, it was noon and both of them were hungry.

 

“I don’t have a lot of things right now…” Hyukjae said as he looked through his…fridge? Or something along the line that Donghae somehow managed to forgot the name for it in Korean. “I have to shop for food later. Do you mind if we eat instant noodle?”

 

Donghae had no idea what that is so he went along with it. He found out later that it’s a very common and simple food by just adding hot water to the dry clump of white noodle. Although Donghae wanted to complain that Hyukjae was feeding him common food, but he admitted that it was fascinating to see how the food was made just by adding water (and taste pretty good as well).

 

“Donghae?” Hyukjae asked after slurping some noodles into his mouth.

 

“Yes?” Donghae responded, struggling a little with the chopsticks.

 

“Can you teach me Lorian?” Hyukjae said. “I’m curious to know what your language is like?”

 

“Oh.” Donghae wasn’t expecting that. “Sure, I’ll teach you.”

 

The corner of Hyukjae’s plump lips lifted into a smile.

 

_Why does it make me feel so…warm?_

 

Unlike Donghae, Hyukjae had a harder time learning. The rolls and clicks of tongue were very strange to him, but the blond refused to give up and kept trying. They went on for hours until Hyukjae finally mastered some of the basic sentences.

 

“I have to go now.” Hyukjae finally said, looking out the window and noticed the sun was setting. “Have to get food or we will starve for dinner tonight.”

 

“Okay.” Donghae said, a little sad that Hyukjae had to go when they were having a good time together. Then again, he noticed a slight tinge of worry in the other’s brown eyes.

 

_You idiot, of course he would be worried. You are living here and he had to use more money to feed both of us._

 

Even though Earth have a different lifestyle than Loriah, Donghae could tell that Hyukjae doesn’t earn a lot from the simple looks of the apartment. He slowly started to feel guilty of making Hyukjae using more money than he should. This feeling was quite new to him as he never had to worry about money when he lived in his palace.

 

Donghae wondered around the apartment, exploring Hyukjae’s place yet again. This time he stayed mostly in the kitchen and living area, looking through the different items. Donghae could tell Hyukjae was obsessed with coffee, along with tea and other snacks (particularly strawberry-related). _Someone who sells drinks, perhaps?_

 

In the living area, he managed to find a photo album of Hyukjae. Hyukjae had taught him about cameras and how they create photos, which were the realistic portraits like the ones in his rooms that Donghae saw the day before. Donghae smiled at how cute Hyukjae looked when he was younger. His cheeks were chubbier and rounder, giving off a soft and fluffy vibe. Although, he did notice that there was a period of time where Hyukjae’s smile looked a little sad and more serious. The number of pictures taken was sparse comparing to others as well. Donghae took out the photo and flipped over the back to see the date. Judging from the time system used on Earth, this photo was taken… _15 years ago?_

 

Donghae wondered what happened that made Hyukjae sad when he was a kid. He had his own problems too around that time too, but he couldn’t imagine what the young Hyukjae went through.

 

Just then, the door unlocked and Hyukjae stepped in with heavy bags of food. Donghae quickly rushed over to help carry the food to the kitchen, and noticed that Hyukjae bought a lot more than what he had earlier in the fridge.

 

“Hyukjae…” Donghae said slowly. “Is it fine that I live with you right now?”

 

Hyukjae looked confused. “Yeah, I thought we established that.”

 

“No, I mean like, from what I see around here…you don’t earn that much money, right?” Donghae asked, hoping that the blond wouldn’t thought the question was rude.

 

“It’s true that I don’t earn that much, but this is fine.” The other paused for a moment before he said, though Donghae did notice the other’s shoulders sagged slightly.

 

The awkward silence continued until dinnertime. Donghae felt bad that he ruined the mood, since Hyukjae was the first person he spoken to casually in a long time.

 

_A friend maybe?_

 

“Can we watch a movie?” Donghae asked after dinner. “Not horror, please.”

 

Hyukjae laughed. “Sure, I have some movies by the TV. You can pick.”

 

Using his very basic understanding of Korean, he picked out a disc that had some fishes on it. “How about this?”

 

“’Finding Nemo’?” Hyukjae asked incredulously. “It’s a kids movie.”

 

“Oh.” Donghae felt disappointed. He liked fishes after all.

 

“But,” Hyukjae said. “We can watch it if you are curious. Although it’s funny to see a thousand-year-old guy watching a kids movie.”

 

Donghae scowled at him and played the movie. He actually really liked it, and Hyukjae resumed to talking and teasing him throughout the duration of the movie. Donghae wondered how could Hyukjae bring so much warmth when he could feel the coldness of the dead on Earth.

 

_A friend. A special friend._

 

ɅV

 

It was the next day and Hyukjae woke up early, as the weekend was over and it was time to go back to work. He had told the prince that he will leave early in the morning to get ready for the day. Hyukjae prepared some food (and coffee) so that the prince could eat.

 

Although, he did notice that some stuff in the house had been moved slightly, meaning that Donghae had been exploring when Hyukjae wasn’t home. He didn’t really mind though, as things were probably much different from where Donghae came from.

 

After spending the weekend with the prince, Hyukjae felt Donghae was an incredibly nice and caring person, despite that the other usually worn a serious face and scowls whenever Hyukjae teased him. Even though he still couldn’t look at the other directly in the eye, Hyukjae could guess the handsome prince attracted a lot of attention, probably a couple lovers too (scratch that, Donghae was at least a thousand years old, but Hyukjae hoped that the amount wasn’t that high).

 

Once he left a note (he trusted that Donghae could read them) on the kitchen table for Donghae, Hyukjae left for the cafe. The sun was just peeking out above the trees, washing everything in its golden light. He just prayed that Kyuhyun didn’t sleep in again and be helping him opening the cafe.

 

As expected, Kyuhyun was not there for the infinite time.

 

Hyukjae sighed and took out the keys to unlock the front door. The interior was usually spotless despite that no one was there for the weekend, but Hyukjae would still take his time cleaning every inch and corner.

 

 _It’s just a normal day_. Hyukjae thought to himself as he started to wipe the table surfaces. _Well, plus an extra-terrestrial prince living with me for a while. What could possibly happen?_

 

ɅV

 

“Do you have a plan, sir?” One of the members of the council asked.

 

Sungmin paced back and forth in front of the empty throne before finally sighing to himself. It’s been two days and there were no signs of Donghae anywhere. Heck, Donghae was not seen anywhere on the capital planet.

 

“Search the rest of Lorian planets. Do not inform any citizens of the news.” Sungmin said. “If that fails, we will need to contact our allies.”

 

_Where are you, Donghae?_

 

Sungmin just hoped that history wasn’t repeating itself. Over one of the worst and darkest time of Loriah.

 

ɅV

 

_Donghae was running through the dark. His mind was in complete chaos while his panicking heart was beating at a rapid pace. Changing into his canine form made things a little easier._

_However, he was alone._

_Donghae had just found where Sungmin was hiding when it appeared and started chasing him. The figure chased him so far that he couldn’t even see the palace anymore. He was terrified, as the figure radiated so much negative feelings: guilt, anger, hatred, fear, death. Things that shouldn’t exist on Loriah._

_If only his brother was there to help him._

_After what felt like hours of running, Donghae felt the figure disappeared behind him. Just before him, there was a cave hidden behind a small waterfall._

_Donghae snuck into the cave and was glad when he found that it was empty. It was way too late to return to the palace, so he decided to rest there, hoping the figure wouldn’t come back._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello~~~
> 
> It's been a while LOL. Sorry that this story wasn't updated in so long :( School has started and I am very busy, so don't expect frequent updates from me, but I will try and write things whenever I can :D
> 
> The flashbacks will slowly piece together as more chapters arrive, so please look forward to future updates!
> 
> This story is also available on [AFF](https://www.asianfanfics.com/story/view/1353680/h--ven-angst-donghae-eunhae-eunhyuk-fantasy-fluff-romance-haehyuk)
> 
> Kudos and comments appreciated! Thank you for all the support!


	6. Ring of the Windchime

_Hyukjae’s ears made a little twitch when heard noises from his hiding spot. He had chosen to climb up a big oak tree (there was a reason why Kyuhyun called him a monkey) and hid within the thick canopy. Feeling the cool breeze that had started to pick up in the late afternoon sky, he leaned back on the trunk and observed the leaves rustle lazily._

_He could be there all day long._

_There was still no sign of Kyuhyun after fifteen minutes, and Hyukjae was starting to wonder if he should change to a more obvious spot so that the other can find him. He was debating whether or not to climb down the tree when he heard a voice._

_Or rather, several people talking._

_Carefully balancing on the branch, he peeked out to see a group of teenagers walking towards the sea dock not too far away. And they seem to be carrying something._

_The curious Hyukjae quietly climbed down the tree to see what are they doing._

 

ɅV

 

Donghae slowly opened his sleepy eyes and embraced the warm sunlight coming through the curtains. It’s been two weeks since he came to Earth, and he was surprised to see how fast he was adapting to the life here.

 

Which is not saying much, as he never went outside.

 

On the bright side, he slowly learned to manage things on his own when Hyukjae was not home. He learned to clean, cook some food, and fix things that happen to break for some reason. Donghae never had to do any of those things when lived in his palace back home, as all the servants did the work.

 

When he first heard that he had to do the chores, he whined and complained like a little kid. The other found it ridiculous since Donghae was at least a thousand years old, and the prince was behaving like a five-year-old.

 

_“The house isn’t going to clean itself and I am not your servant, Donghae. So better do it or I will kick you out of the house.”_

 

Sulking while grabbing the broom, that began his training on doing chores. It was hard at first as there were so many things to do, but he eventually managed to do all of them without Hyukjae scolding and teasing him for making a mistake when the blond got home.

 

Donghae sighed and got out of bed. He stretched and yawned before turning around to find Hyukjae’s bed empty but neatly made. As usual, Hyukjae was already gone to work at the cafe across the park, leaving Donghae to hang around the apartment for the day. He smiled when he saw the plate of omelette and a cup of coffee on the table. Even though they knew each other for only two weeks, Hyukjae never failed to make Donghae breakfast before he left for work, which Donghae thought was rather sweet and nice of the other.

 

Sipping on his coffee, he glanced outside and watched people doing their usual business during the day. The golden leaves had darkened to brown and began to fall of the trees. Hyukjae told him that snow would appear when the leaves were gone, and Donghae was excited because he had never seen snow before. He regretted not paying attention to paint lessons when he was younger because he wanted to remember all these colours.

 

_Note to self: take art lessons when you get back home._

 

A few hours later when he finished all the chores, Donghae lounged on the couch and watched the news program. Although his Korean skills had improved over the weeks, he still had some trouble identifying a few words and expression, but he had help from Hyukjae to learn them.

 

It was then it occurred to him about how much he relied on Hyukjae. In contrary of living in a palace as a prince, he had much more freedom here on Earth despite not stepping outside the apartment once. No meetings to attend, no need to maintain his royal etiquette, and no nagging brother to ignore.

 

Which, in translation, meant how much he missed having Hyukjae around when he was gone off to work.

 

_Should I go out to see Hyukjae at work?_

 

Donghae’s finger froze just as he was about to press the “next channel” button on the remote. Visit Hyukjae at work? That thought had never occurred to him before since he was worried about the outside, but based on the things he saw on TV, Earth actually appeared to be not _that_ bad (emphasis on “ _that_ bad” because of all the news about conflicts, which were quite unusual for a person coming from a peaceful place).

 

He glanced at the clock. Almost noon.

 

That meant its lunch time…but he had no idea what food to make.

 

_Another reason to visit Hyukjae._

 

_But what if something happens?_

_Just go, you coward._

_But-_

_You have nothing better to do anyways._

_Ah screw it, fine._

 

ɅV

 

Hyukjae was at the back of the cafe drinking his own cup of coffee (now cold) he made before the store opened, preparing for the surge of people coming into the cafe for lunch. Ever since the weather started to get chillier and cloudier, more people had come in for a nice warm drink and some food. It was good for the business, but Hyukjae felt tired and a little overwhelmed by the amount of work he has to do.

 

He peeked out the window and glanced at his apartment across the sea of trees in the park. Even after two weeks, he is still worried about something bad might happen to the prince. Although Donghae is like a thousand years older and should know how to take care of himself, Hyukjae couldn’t help but wanting to check up on him.

 

Just as he drained his cup of coffee and finished washing it, Kyuhyun called out from the front. “Hyuk, are you there?”

 

“Yeah, I’m going to check up on the cakes right now.” Hyukjae called back.

 

“Come out for a second.”

 

Hyukjae could hear the excitement in Kyuhyun’s voice, so he quickly stole a glance at the cakes in the oven before he walked out to the front. Just as he is about to ask Kyuhyun why did he called him to come out, the windchime rang as someone entered from the front door.

 

There stood a middle-aged man with an angelic smile. His hair is black, but Hyukjae could see some of the grey roots starting to form here and there. The man was wearing a simple old-fashioned suit and carrying a weathered leather briefcase.

 

Hyukjae’s face instantly light up with a bright smile. He hadn’t seen this man in almost two months.

 

“Manager!” Hyukjae exclaimed. “Welcome back!”

 

“Hello there my boy.” The man said warmly. “And hello to you Kyuhyun.” Kyuhyun bowed politely.

 

“Hyukjae, how many times I have to tell you to call me Leeteuk not Manager when there is no one around?” Leeteuk chided. “It makes me feel old.”

 

Hyukjae chuckled. Leeteuk may look middle-aged, but his fashion sense suggest otherwise. “Sorry, it’s just a habit.”

 

“Better get rid of that habit then.” Leeteuk said jokingly as he set the briefcase on the surface beside the cash register. “Kyuhyun, are you keeping up lately?”

 

“Yes sir.”

 

“That’s a lie. You are almost late at least three times a week because you stayed up to play computer games.” Hyukjae said.

 

“Hey!” Kyuhyun protested with a look of betrayal on his face. “I thought we are friends!”

 

“Now, now you two.” Leeteuk stopped them from bickering too much. “Lunch time is near so you two don’t have the time to bicker. However, would you like to see the things I collected on my trip?”

 

“Yes!” Hyukjae and Kyuhyun both exclaimed. Even though they are both in their twenties, they are always excited like little kids whenever Leeteuk shows them things he found. Leeteuk went on a trip around the world to explore the cultures and more specifically, coffee beans and some other exotic ingredients. He left the cafe in the hands of Hyukjae and Kyuhyun (mostly Hyukjae) and trust them to keep the store running while he was gone.

 

Leeteuk opened the briefcase and a waft of strong rich coffee aroma came out. Inside, the briefcase was split into eight different compartments of different beans. Each with has their own unique shape and colour, and Hyukjae’s nose tells him that each one has varying smell as well. As Leeteuk removed the compartments, it is revealed that the briefcase has a lower level, this time there are a multitude of compartments of different spices, dried leaves, and even dried flowers.

 

“Wow, Leeteuk. You found so many things this trip!” Kyuhyun stared at the different compartments in awe.

 

“I sure did. I wanted to test each one to see if I can use them to create new menu items, but I don’t have all the equipment while I am away from the cafe. So I saved samples and brought them back. However,” Leeteuk paused. “you two should get back to work now, customers are coming in soon.”

 

“Yes, Leeteuk.” Hyukjae and Kyuhyun both said. Kyuhyun went to the back to check on the food while Hyukjae headed upstairs to finish setting up the rest of the tables. Humming some random tunes while wiping the tables, Hyukjae couldn’t help but to stare out the window to look at his apartment again.

 

Just as he put down his washrag, he heard the windchime from downstairs. Hyukjae quickly rushed down the steps to greet the first customer of the afternoon.

 

“Good afternoon! Welcome to- “

 

Then he nearly dropped his washrag and bottle when he saw the person standing there.

 

“Donghae?”

 

ɅV

 

_Is this the right direction?_

 

Donghae was getting nervous. After he gets dressed (which, he _thinks_ he is because Donghae copied what Hyukjae wears on a typical work day), he walked out of the building and entered the park. He has seen Hyukjae taken the path before once when he woke up early, but Donghae doesn’t know which way to go after since the trees blocked his view.

 

However, he was able to pick up a faint scent of coffee (at this point he thinks he is developing an addiction to it) with his sensitive nose and Donghae decided to follow it. People were looking at him weirdly because he kept his nose up high to smell the coffee, but he wasn’t paying much attention as he is still nervous about approaching humans.

 

Donghae followed the scent across the center of the park where the fountain stood. He went around it and went the opposite direction from home, as he could gradually see a white building in the distance. As he approached closer, the coffee smell intensified and Donghae could see a little garden jutting out from the building where people can sit outside. He couldn’t see an entrance on this side of the building, so he circled around to the front beside the road.

 

The building itself seems simple yet elegant. It has white walls, white doors, white flower pots, and even white lanterns on either side of the front door. There is a sign on top of the door that says “Cafe Haven” in Korean, with another language written beneath it. Judging from what he could see into the glass door, it looks fairly empty. Taking in a deep breath, he slowly opened the front door.

 

At first, he didn’t hear anyone, but Donghae was slightly startled by the sound of the…Windmill? Window? Windchime! The sound however faded away as the door closed behind him. The space was drowned in silence again until he heard someone walking down the stairs.

 

“Good afternoon! Welcome to- “

Donghae looked up at the familiar voice. He saw Hyukjae, wearing a white uniform over his usual clothes. The blonde’s blue denim pants matched with his own black jeans. Hyukjae stood there with his mouth wide open.

 

“Donghae?”

 

“Uhm. Hi.” Donghae said awkwardly, shifting from foot to foot. He looked around checking little details of the store. _Fancy place._ He inwardly commented.

 

Hyukjae looked around quickly to see if anyone else was around, then he quickly grabbed Donghae’s wrist and pulled him to one of the tables by the edge, looking out into the little garden he saw earlier. “What are you doing here?” Hyukjae hissed.

 

“I uh…got bored?” Donghae tried. He couldn’t just say that he misses having Hyukjae around too keep company right out loud.

 

“You could have gotten lost! I should get you back home- “

 

“Hyukjae?” Kyuhyun called out as he returned from the back. “Are you done the second floor yet?”

 

“Crap.” Hyukjae cursed. “I’m almost done! Just taking in the order for our customer right now!” He called back.

 

“Well,” Hyukjae sighed. “I don’t really trust you to go back home by yourself, but I guess you can stay here for now and we can go home together later. I will get you something to drink and eat since I’m assuming you didn’t eat lunch yet.” He added at the end when Donghae’s stomach growled, making the prince blush slightly in embarrassment.

 

“Ah that’s fine.” Donghae said. Really, he is curious to see what Hyukjae does here in this cafe. “Sorry if I am going to disturb you from your work.”

 

“Don’t worry about it.” Hyukjae glanced around again before giving him a smile. “I will bring you something after I finish setting up the second floor.”

 

Donghae watched as Hyukjae climbed up the stairs and out from his view. He sighed and stared out into the garden, still wondering if this is a good idea or not and why the sudden urge to visit the cafe.

 

ɅV

 

Sungmin is getting frustrated and anxious. It’s been two whole weeks since Donghae’s disappearance and everyone in the palace is feeling tense. So far, there has been no sighting of the prince in any of the allied territories. Additionally, the council is starting to get unrest as well, but they agree that the disappearance should still be kept secret from public to prevent the spread of chaos and fear.

 

However, Sungmin knew Donghae was not dead, otherwise he would have felt it. With the lack of news of finding the prince on nearby planets, Sungmin has a feeling that Donghae is out there much _much_ further away from home than where he should be.

 

Giving up, he closed the map on the table in front of him and walked out into the palace garden. He snuck into the hiding spot behind the bush of blue rose in his wolf form to rest and concentrate there.

 

There is one more method of finding Donghae. Sungmin usually does not use this technique as it requires a lot of stamina and patience, but he is running out of time.

 

Closing his eyes, Sungmin imagined himself flying across space. His body floating across the sea of stars and planets, looking for his dear brother.

 

ɅV

 

Leeteuk stood by the doorway to the other sections of the first floor, watching the two in front him with a small smile. He came back home with reasons, and the samples he collected is only one of those reasons.

 

_It has begun._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So it has been...7? months since I updated. Sorry this took way longer than it should because I got super busy with school. I meant to post something around Christmas/New Years but more stuff piled on. TT_TT
> 
> However I am near the end of the school term so I can write more again! I will be updating my other work too.
> 
> Kudos and comments appreciated! Thank you for all the support!


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